Get ready to
turn a new page in 2020 – Liverpool is gearing up for the Year of Reading.
On Tuesday, 21
January, organisations and schools from across the city will be gathering at
Liverpool Central Library to officially launch a 12-month celebration that’s
set to get everyone enjoying the magic of reading.
Mayor of
Liverpool Joe Anderson has designated 2020 to be the year of #LiverpoolReads in
a bid to improve literacy across the city.
And everyone
will be encouraged to get involved. Whether it’s parents reading to the
youngest children to get them excited about stories, or grown-ups who may not
have picked up a book since they left school there will be something for
everyone throughout the year.
The launch will
kickstart #LiverpoolReads and it will be a celebration of the work of
organisations and schools in Liverpool which are already inspiring people to
spend some quality time with the written word.
Partners
working with Liverpool City Council include Edge Hill University, The Reader,
Liverpool Learning Partnership, and Comics Youth, a Liverpool-based creative community
organisation that supports marginalised young people across the city region.
#LiverpoolReads
is also supported by national charity the Reading Agency which promotes the
benefits of reading for children and adults across the country.
Speakers at the
event include:
- Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson
- Tim Quinn, former writer, artist
and editor at DC Thomson and Marvel, now of Mighty
Quinn Management
- Tony Lloyd, chief executive of the ADHD
Foundation
- Hayley Butler, head of marketing
and communications at the Reading Agency
- Jude Lennon, children’s author.
Debbie Hicks
MBE, creative director, the Reading Agency: “The Reading Agency is delighted to support
Liverpool’s Year of Reading 2020 because we too are passionate about getting
everyone reading for pleasure and enjoying the benefits this can bring.
“We can’t wait
to come to the city next week and we will also be back at Central Library to
celebrate the relaunch of our Quick Reads programme with a public panel event on 18
February. Quick Reads brings great stories by best-selling authors to less
confident readers as well as to regular readers who want to try something new.
It’s a great way to start the year using the proven power of reading to change
lives.”
Upcoming initiatives will see the launch of a My First Library Card for children next month, sponsored by Edge Hill University, as well as a reading competition backed by Kathryn Jackson, lead governor on the council of governors at Alder Hey Children’s Foundation Hospital Trust.
Construction
company Willmott Dixon is sponsoring refreshments for the launch which are
supplied by Wirral-based surplus food charity Neo Community.
To keep up to
date on #LiverpoolReads please visit www.liverpool.gov.uk/liverpoolreads . And also follow #LiverpoolRoad on
social media.
